Writings from the wife of a wounded warrior who has been left with mostly invisible injuries.

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Remembering to Take Care of Me

After all of the excitement our family had the second half of 2011, I had to take a step away from some things. I needed a break. It was extremely hard for me to take that step back, but I couldn't afford not to. I was quickly becoming burnt out and overwhelmed with everything. We had a huge spot light put on us, which brought many blessings to us, but it also added a huge amount of stress. I managed to hold it all together until after our episode of EMHE aired, but after that I pretty much crashed for a couple of months.

This break ended up being a break from technology to some degree. I rarely got on my computer, didn't watch much news, and pretty much vegged out as much as I could. I felt really guilty during this time, but I had to do it in order to take care of me. Everyone in my family also happened to get sick a couple of times during this hiatus I took, so that just confirmed to me that we all really just needed some downtime.

I have had a bit of a slow start in 2012 getting back to it all, but I feel that I finally am getting back into the swing of it all. I feel energized and ready to get back to advocating for families like ours as well as continuing to take care of my family.

Our program Silent Siren is really coming together. We are still in infancy, but we are making some serious strides in development. While working on some of the education pieces last week, the topic of self care for the caregiver was brought up. It really got me thinking about taking care of myself and how I do that. It is so often to forget this part when I get caught up in taking care of everyone else!

One of the things that I do to take care of me is to read. I read a lot of things about PTSD and other "work" topics, but I LOVE to read just for fun too. So, I've spent quite a bit of time the last couple of months reading, just for fun. It is a great escape for me to read a novel, that has nothing to do with my real life. I can travel to a different place, or time and just get lost. I realize how much I've missed it the last year when my life felt so busy I didn't have time to pick up my kindle and just read. It has been so great to get back to this great escape for me.

When my life gets crazy and hectic, I have to remember that I need to still take care of me. Sometimes I forget this and it takes someone or an event to remind me. However, this year as we all seek to find balance in our life (what my family is focusing on this year), I have to constantly remember it's ok to take some time for me.

Now, a little update on Allen.......we saw his psychiatrist last week and we made a medication change and will see him again in a couple of months to see how things are going. I still see him struggling, but I have to say that he is so much better, even on his bad days, than he was a year ago and we are so thankful. I'm going to close this with a picture of Allen and I from an event with our partner organization, Karla Smith Foundation last November. I LOVE this picture of the two of us.

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About Me

I am the wife of a wounded warrior. This season of my life started November 21, 2007, the day before Thanksgiving. My husband was deployed to Iraq and my family had all went to my sister's house for the holiday. My mom, sister, and I were making pies when my cell phone rang. Little did I know that my entire life was about to change. My husband had been critically injured in Iraq. Thus began this season of my life.
We are now three years into this season. We have all changed in many ways. Each day we try to embrace each other for who we are now and not dwell too much on who we used to be. Some changes are not so good, but many are definitely for the better. Just recently, we have started talking about the positive changes that we notice that are a direct result of this traumatic event.
I now know that my passion in life is to help other wounded warriors and their families. There are many needs that are not being met and it is my hope to help fill in some of those gaps for others who are traveling this same road.

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If you would like to post a link to any part of my blog, or copy and paste, please ask for permission before doing so. This is my personal story and is written for the purpose of self therapy and to help other's in similar situations feel less alone or find resources for help. I appreciate everyone's support and comments and will gladly grant permission to people or organizations that have similar beliefs as my own.

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I'm a Finalist!!

MG Bunting presenting SGT Hill with Purple Heart

December 3, 2007 WRAMC

Family Pic

June 2010

New York City Wounded Warrior Trip with the FDNY

Riding an FDNY fireboat to the statue of liberty. May 2008

Family

There is no bond stronger than the one that exists in a family. It allows us to fail without fault, to learn without loss,to love without condition. It is how we become who we are...-Brooke Vogel

Allen, Gina, Makale, and Dreyson

Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn, NY

Road to Recovery Conference and Tribute

Makale and Dreyson with Mickey and Minnie in Orlando December 2008

Daddy and the Boys

Hanging out in the hottub

Lightning McQueen at Hollywood Studios

Posing with Lightning McQueen

Makale @ Sunflower State Games

Makale and Heather displaying their medals from the Sunflower State Games August 2007